Love On The Hogwarts Express
by Erik's Rose 2809
Summary: I have Newly Edited this! Harry is on his way back to the Dursley's after a miserable sixth year. He is very cut up about Sirius and Dumbledore, so the romance that ensues aboard the train takes him completely by surprise!


**Love on the Hogwart's express.**

_It is Harry's sixth year and he is making his way back to the Dursley's for one last time on the Hogwart's express before he sets off on his quest to find the missing horcruxes and ultimately destroy Voldemort once and for all. What he doesn't expect is the start of a fresh romance that takes him completely by surprise. This is is my own version of what happens with Harry's lovelife on that train journey. I don't own any of the rights to Harry Potter, JK has that priviledge. I am paddling in her thought pool_!

Harry boarded the Hogwart's express gloomily at his thought of having to return and face the Dursley's once more. It was a sombre afternoon considering that Dumbledore's funeral was only last week and everyone generally was very upset about it but none more so than Harry. The same negative guilt and questioning seemed to consume him entirely,

"First Sirius and now Dumbledore, I could've prevented it! Why didn't I think to do something sooner? Some chosen one! If I'm so powerful why couldn't I stop it?"

Harry sat down in the compartment and pressed his head up against the cooling window panes determined not to give away these private thoughts to his friends by his smarting eyes. He blamed himself for everything that had happened with both Sirius, Dumbledore and now Ginny. he just felt despondent because he had ended things with her in the way that he had and she had gone her own way and seemed to be getting along very well with Neville Longbottom. He was glad that Ginny at least had Neville, but he couldn't stop thinking about what could've been if it wasn't for Voldemort and his followers endangering everyone remotely close to him.

Ron Luna and Hermione sat opposite Harry, but Hermione couldn't help noticing that something seemed to be troubling Harry even if he wasn't going to open up about it in front of his friends.

" Harry, are you alright? You're very quiet and you haven't stopped staring out of the window since we got on the train! Do you want to talk about it?", she asked gently.

" I'm fine Hermione, I'm just tired ok? Really, there's nothing to talk about.", he sighed weakly.

"He does look a little off colour come to think of it. Luna said thoughtfully,

" Something's really bothering him, I can tell!

"Except he's too bloody stubborn to tell his mates what it is!", Ron exclaimed loudly.

"Hey, I'm still here! You don't need to talk like I'm dead!" Harry turned his head away from the window for the first time since he had boarded the train and now all of them could see from his face why he hadn't wanted them asking questions.

"Bloody hell Harry!" Ron said in shock, " You look terrible!"

" Thanks a lot Ron!", Harry laughed weakly. He did look terrible though, Ron was right, there was an inexplicable pallor in Harry's face and he had huge dark circles under his eyes which were red and bloodshot. He seemed to have lost an unbelievable amount of weight in the last few weeks and it was now starting to manifest itself properly in the gauntness of his face. They were all worried about him now especially Luna who had stood up quite suddenly and grabbed Ron's arm. Come on, we need to find Ginny, she may be able to get more out of him than we were!"

Ron shrugged out of Luna's grasp and gave her a stern look,

"No Luna, Don't say anything to Ginny!"

Luna turned on her head and looked at Ron in confusion.

"They've broken up Luna!" Hermione whispered urgently at her. "Ron already knows, that's why he was reluctant to go with you and get Ginny."

"Oh, Harry I'm sorry!" Luna sighed embarrassed and she sat down again quietly on her seat.

" Look, if you lot want to go and talk to Ginny go, she's your friend as well. Just because we broke up doesn't mean that you can't talk to her!" Harry shuffled in his seat and pressed his head back against the window as Ron and Luna made to leave. Hermione however stayed where she was and now she came over and sat beside Harry. She laid her hand tentatively on his shoulder and then cast the muffliato spell on the compartment doors so that they wouldn't be overheard.

"Harry, I know how you must be feeling! We're all upset about what happened to Dumbledore. It should never have happened. Snape is an evil git and I hope he gets caught and rots away in Azkabhan for it! I am sure though that Dumbledore wouldn't want you to suffer like this or Sirius, you're making yourself ill!"

Harry had momentarily looked up in surprise and secret amusement at the sound of Hermione swearing, which was very rare for her. She had however touched a nerve and Harry wasn't having any of it. He couldn't allow himself to crack in front of someone like this.

" **OH YOU DO KNOW HOW I'M FEELING DO YOU?", **he roared suddenly making her jump,** "You know what it's like living in the knowledge that you could have prevented two men's deaths and that they could be at your side when you fought the darkest wizard of all time? You know what it's like to really love someone and not be able to pursue it because you live in the fear that they will be killed or harmed by your worst enemy and his followers? You know what it's like to live with bastards who completely hate you when you could be living with your own Godfather if he wasn't incarcerated for something he never did? You know what it's like to have to to kill someone on your own when you haven't the slightest idea how to?"** Harry broke off and turned away from Hermione, a torrent of tears was threatening to erupt from him at any moment and he wasn't going to lose control, he prided himself on that. He had to be strong, keep it together as much as he could, even if it was killing him.

Hermione had tears in her eyes now, she desperately wanted to help Harry, she was more than aware though that they could still be interrupted by people coming into the compartment, so she locked the door and muttered another quick spell so that they could see out, but no one would be able to see in. Ron would most likely stay with Luna as they were after all now going out. They were most likely snogging in Ginny's compartment. Hermione didn't feel that way about Ron, although she still considered him a close friend, their romance had never really properly got up off the ground. They were too different! She had feelings for somebody else now although he didn't yet know it.

Hermione sat back down beside Harry and squeezed his hand gently.

"Please don't ever feel that you can't tell me things Harry", Hermione whispered softly. " I'm here for you no matter what and I hate to see you suffering like this!" She now reached up and ruffled his hair. Harry turned and looked at her surprised by this sudden affection that he had never felt from anyone other than Ginny. God she was beautiful, he thought, with her brown wavy hair spilling around her shoulders and those big brown imploring eyes. Feeling this warmth from her brought everything back and Harry screwed up his face against it all the while battling the flood of emotion that seemed to be consuming him entirely. Suddenly he couldn't contain it any more, he pressed his face into Hermione's shoulder while huge deep wracking sobs shook his entire body.He gasped and gulped with grief. On and on it went, he just couldn't control it any more, it was heartbreaking to watch.

Hermione held him close and stroked his hair lovingly all the while silent tears slid down her cheeks and onto Harry's hair.

"It's alright Harry! Let it all go, you need to! I'm here ok, I'm here and I'm not going anywhere!"

Harry lifted his tear-stained face now and looked up at her thoughtfully,

"Hermione are you crying?", he asked gently.

" It's just..., oh Harry, you poor darling. Why should anyone have to go through all that?".

Harry sat upright again and brought his hand to her cheek. Very softly he smoothed Hermione's tears away with his thumb and stayed there just holding her face in his hands and comtemplating her reflectively.

" I love you Hermione!", he said in a broken voice. He reached up now and took her beautiful face in his hands and kissed her gently on the lips. Hermione smiled at him threw her arms around his neck and kissed him passionately and Harry was lost in her. He frantically ran his hands through her wavy hair, he wanted her so completely and he couldn't help himself. He could feel the intense love behind those kisses, love which he until now had never reciprocated in quite this way! He adored her, he knew that now and he was enjoying every moment of his being with her. This romance had taken him completely by surprise, but there was no way he was going to lose Hermione like he lost Ginny, he wasn't going to make the same mistake again.

" Hermione, please tell me you aren't regretting any of this", Harry said huskily when they broke apart, " because I'm not!".

" Harry, I have loved you for some time now and no, I don't regret anything!"

" Really, you've loved me for some time? Since when?", he asked out of curiosity.

" Harry, I've loved you since first year when I first met you on the train! I pursued Ron for a while because I thought I loved him too, but it wasn't in the same way that I loved you! I would've done something about it sooner, but you were going out with Ginny at the time so I tried to get close to Ron, but it didn't work, were always arguing!"

Hermione looked at Harry again and he leaned in again for another deep kiss which she was more than happy to accept. Harry felt better in this short space of time being with her than he had felt since before the funeral when he was with Ginny, but she was happy with Neville now and Ron had Luna. He could've stayed like this in her arms forever, but he knew that there were bigger things than him and Hermione that needed his attention and he didn't even want to think about those things at this moment. Hermione seemed to sense his insecurity,

" Harry, you won't be on your own fighting him, you've got all of us and I for one will always be by your side. I mean that Harry!"

Harry felt himself get all choked up with emotion again! God, what was wrong with him, a short time around Hermione and he went to bits! He wasn't ashamed about showing his feelings any more though, Hermione had shown him that it was ok to get things out I the open and air them properly. Grief turned to poison when it was kept inside and he didn't need that jeopardising his chances when he would face Voldemort for the final time.

" Marry me Hermione?", he asked with urgency in his voice now.

"Harry… what?", Hermione gasped in surprise.

" I know I'm moving fast here Hermione, but I totally adore you and I don't want to lose you in the same way that I lost Ginny, I can't let that happen again. It will kill me! When it's all over and I've finished that evil bastard! Please, say you'll be mine, I love you Hermione! I just never realised it properly before and I can't be without you ever again!"

Hermione's eyes began to brim with tears now as Harry looked at her hopefully, his face beaming with love for her. Radiance shone in Harry's eyes in a way that she couldn't recall him ever being since being with Ginny. She had never felt this happy and completely in love with anyone as she did with Harry. She gazed quietly into his beautiful emerald eyes and ran her hands through his hair before pulling him in for another tender kiss.

" Oh course I'll marry you Harry!", she whispered softly against his cheek, "I love you beyond belief!"

Harry was ecstatic and whooped with sheer joy whilst Hermione laughed at him. He couldn't help it, he was so in love with her and his emotions were so intense that he just went along with them. Harry jumped up, and scooped Hermione up into his arms. He kissed her passionately and whirled her round and round in his arms just enjoying the sheer intimacy of this moment he wanted to remember forever. She was his, he would never have to be alone any more and he was certain that the love he felt for Hermione and she felt equally for him would vanquish Voldemort once and for all. After all, hadn't Dumbledore said that his greatest power was love?

_Well I hope you all enjoyed reading that. It is my third fan fiction so far. I just love writing romance and I am a big fan of Harry/Hermione potential romances. Thanks again to everybody so far who has read and reviewed my other fanfics. I thought I'd do this sweet one-shot as I'm feeling quite emotional and mushy at the moment! I need a boyfriend methinks! Usha88 thanks again for your kind review for "Beloved Saviour", I wrote this with you in mind! This is newly edited, so I hope it will make a little more sense to my readers. Thnks again for reading and reveiwing!_


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